Ukraine creates plan for Crimea’s economic development after liberation

The Ukrainian government is developing an economic model for the development of Crimea. The project will be implemented as part of the Strategy for the Restoration of the Peninsula after its liberation, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said. The plan consists of five key points.

“Crimea is the new tourist center of Europe. Let’s turn the peninsula into a resort where you can relax all year round. This is a new hotel infrastructure and new public spaces under the Krym365 [“Crimea365”] brand,” Shmyhal explained.

The next step will be the connection of Crimea with Ukraine, Europe and the world – the construction of highways, two airports, the dismantling of the Kerch (Crimean) Bridge for safe navigation in the Black and Azov seas, as well as the integration of the peninsula into the system of the European transport space.

After that, Crimea will be integrated into ENTSO-E – the European network of electricity transmission system operators. It is also planned to develop the Black Sea gas shelf with the involvement of the latest technologies. Thus, Crimea will become a net exporter of energy resources.

The fourth step is the development of the agricultural sector. The authorities are preparing a project to restore the Kakhovskaya HPP for irrigation in the south of Ukraine. “We will bet on small farms, we will scale up the yeRobota [“There is a job”] program to support viticulture in Crimea,” Shmyhal said.

Ultimately, it is planned to create a European and world-class IT hub on the peninsula and a special regime for attracting investments in science, education and innovation. “Crimea should become the Ukrainian Silicon Valley. These changes will be gradual, but we already have a vision that will allow us to assess the effectiveness of our movement forward,” the Prime Minister of Ukraine concluded.